


A New Future

by Quirkless_Natsuo (Slowpoke_Curry)



Series: "Reborn" Takes on a Whole New Meaning [4]
Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Adoption, Gen, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Parental Sasaki Mirai | Sir Nighteye, Past Child Neglect, Reincarnation, for chrome's past, hhng... parallels...
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-08-06
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:27:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25665127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Slowpoke_Curry/pseuds/Quirkless_Natsuo
Summary: Having left All Might's agency, Nighteye finds a new purpose outside of hero work. Or, rather, a new purpose finds him.
Relationships: Sasaki Mirai | Sir Nighteye & Chrome Dokuro
Series: "Reborn" Takes on a Whole New Meaning [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1763512
Comments: 25
Kudos: 225
Collections: Reincarnation and Transmigration





	A New Future

Mirai is thirty-two, freshly parted from All Might’s hero agency, and he has never felt more lost.

His goal of opening his own agency was already well underway- paperwork came and went from his desk, as well as applications for sidekicks and other necessary staff. But it was going too smoothly, too mindlessly, it wasn’t enough to give him a purpose. Not like what he used to have.

Since he was old enough to dream, he wanted to stand beside All Might. And he’d been living that dream for a few blissful years. It had been even better than he could have imagined.

He just hadn’t realised how much _worry_ could come from befriending his idol. All Might was a god amongst men, from the outside. When you peered into his life, when you saw the core… he wasn’t as invincible as you thought. You saw a man who hid guilt enough for plenty of lifetimes, who had a huge legacy on his shoulders. A man who could be ~~had been~~ destroyed so thoroughly, but still refused to give up.

If he weren’t so anxious that Toshinori would meet an untimely end sooner rather than later, Mirari might have added that tenacity to the list of things he admired.

His worry had led to this. To these late nights and early mornings, desperately trying to regain that feeling of belonging. Not that he blamed Toshinori- but he didn’t regret his decision either, not enough to wish for a do-over. What’s done is done. He’d just have to support his friend as an outsider.

Taking off his glasses, he rubs the area underneath his eyes. A quick glance at the clock tells him that it’s already 12:36. No doubt that he’d have noticeable eyebags tomorrow.

His back cracks when he stands, complaining about how long he’d stayed slumped at his desk. Maybe he’d take a break tomorrow. Sleep in and read, let some of this stress ease off his shoulders before he ages twenty years. Nodding to himself, Mirari begins to pack his stuff, flicking off his desk light.

Fresh, cold air hits him immediately when he finally steps outside. It feels amazing, compared to the stale smell of vanilla air freshener inside his office.

No one else is out on the streets, not at this hour, leaving him alone yet still on high alert. A hero would always be prepared to jump in; no matter the time or how small. Even if the walk to his apartment is short and probably wouldn’t be interrupted by crime.

However, not even his instincts as a hero prepare him for what he sees outside his apartment.

A small child, bundled in a jacket and long pants, sits right in front of his apartment door. Judging by the long hair and the amount of pink, the child seems to be a girl. She doesn’t react when he gets close- making his chest clench with worry that she might’ve frozen. But when he crouches right beside her, her eyes fly open.

“You c-came,” She says, a soft smile on her face, “I knew that I found the right place…”

Usually, strange children appearing at your house would be a cause for alarm. But she’s looking at him with such a trusting gaze that it hurts to even consider her a threat. So he gently picks her up, noting how she leans into his hold, and takes her inside his home. Even if she is some odd tactic to spy on him, it wouldn’t be fruitful; he doesn’t keep important documents inside his apartment.

He places her down on his couch and checks her over, there’s a very real possibility of hypothermia. After all, he doesn’t know how long she was out there waiting for him. Even when he’s certain that she won’t be in danger, he bundles her in plenty of blankets, before going to make hot chocolate for her.

_Why was she looking for me?_ He wonders, warming up the milk and frowning to himself, _I’m not a well known hero, not yet, even if I was All Might’s sidekick._

It was doubtful that she was just a fan, anyways. Wouldn’t her parents have tracked her down before now? It was midnight, during mid-Winter, no one in their right mind would let their child wander freely like that. She didn’t look particularly healthy, either. Her skin was a bit too pale and she had been a bit too easy to pick up. A runaway, maybe?

He has two cups of warm hot chocolate in his hands before he realizes it. The subject of all his musing is also peering at him, shy. She startles when they lock eyes.

“Do you like whipped cream?” He asks. Children like sugary stuff, don’t they?

She ponders for a moment, then nods, “Y-Yes… Only a little bit, though, please.”

He piles his high, as he usually likes it, then draws a smiley face in hers. It’s slightly wobbly and one eye is higher than the other… But when he hands it to her, she beams at the shoddy attempt.

“It’s very cute… Thank you, Nighteye-sama.”

“You’re welcome,” He responds, letting her take a few drinks as he does the same. Studying her, trying to find more information before he asks outright.

Her clothes aren’t dirty or torn, though clearly not new. They’re also a few sizes too large, from how she keeps rolling up her sleeves. Hand-me-downs then. Her dark grey hair is neatly cut and clean. The only strange thing is how her bangs are grown out to cover her right eye, but it looks intentional.

She places her cup onto the coffee table, halfway finished, and folds her hands on her lap. She bites her lip, “I’m sorry for troubling you Nighteye-sama, but I had to find you. My name is Chrome Rosuto.”

“Why did you need to find me?” He asks, interest peaked. Despite her nerves, she’s taken on a demeanor not unlike that he’s seen from fellow heroes. Deadly serious and ready to make a deal.

“I want to ask for your help, in training my quirk.”

Oh? His gaze falls onto her covered eye. If she needs his help, then they’re probably similar. Was hers activated via her sight as well?

“I’m missing a lot of information, Rosuto. Can you tell me more about yourself?”

She nods, looking slightly embarrassed with herself and less like a mini businesswoman, “Of course. Um… I’m six years old, my quirk just came in recently… I like mizuame… Um…”

“What does your quirk do?”

Chrome touches the corner of her eyepatch, unthinkingly, “It… When I look at someone with both eyes, it allows me to see where they will be within the next twenty-four hours, I think?”

Mirai nods. It sounds like a powerful quirk, as well as one that’d be hard for a child to handle. Though…

“I’m not sure how much help I can be. My quirk is activated consciously. Yours seems to always be active, if I’m not wrong?”

“You’re not,” She says, “But… But I want to learn how to use this power to my advantage. I don’t want it to go to waste.”

That sentence has a shocking amount of weight to it. Her gaze is sad, staring out at something Mirai can’t see, and he wonders who hurt this girl so _badly._ She carries herself unlike any child he’s met before; like someone who has seen the worst of the world and experienced pain like no other.

(He’s seen these eyes before. Sunken, bright blue eyes.)

Mirai takes a sip of his quickly cooling drink, just to keep the thick dread from climbing up his throat. Then, he smiles at her- hoping it isn’t as pitying as he feels it might be, “Well, who would I be to deny such an earnest request?”

“Thank you, Nighteye-sama,” She says as a rush of breath escapes her. Then, she bows her head low, “I am in your care.”

“I do need to know more about you, though.”

He puts his arms on his knees, hands folded right below his eyes, “What is a six year old doing, wandering the streets of Tokyo alone? Where are your parents? Surely they’re worried sick by now.”

“My caretakers don’t care,” Chrome mumbles, grabbing his hot chocolate to take another drink, as Nighteye’s blood runs cold. _They don’t care,_ which is something that shouldn’t come out of a six-year-old’s mouth, especially not with that much apathy. No child, no matter the age, should sound like that when talking about something so… sad.

Adults, who don’t care enough to look for a runaway child during Winter. What an ugly existence.

“Well,” He says, standing up, “It’s late, and I think we both need to sleep. I’m afraid I don’t have a futon, but you’re free to take the bed for tonight.”

“You’re… letting me stay?”

Before he can stop himself, he ruffles her hair, “If your caretakers don’t care, then I don’t see why you can’t stay the night. I don’t want you falling asleep on the way back home.” He’s a stranger, still, but he’s also a hero; her staying the night with him is better than getting scooped up by a less trustworthy adult on public transport.

She seems to agree, because she nods, “Thank you. Um, I don’t mind taking the couch. You’re too tall to fit onto it comfortably, Nighteye-sama.”

Mirai can’t help the soft, amused huff that escapes him, “I can’t disagree with you about that. I’ll go get you a pillow.”

As soon as she was properly bundled up and the lights were out, Chrome was asleep. Mirai ignores his exhaustion for now- even if he’d curse himself for it later. He had some phone calls to make.

* * *

**X**

* * *

Chrome is reborn feeling so, so alone.

She doesn’t struggle with that ever encompassing ache of missing organs, not anymore, but now she found herself having to deal with a loneliness that only the reincarnated must feel. Her Family isn’t around her. Which… Which reminds her of cold eyes and the stinging scent of antiseptic, laying in a too-white room while struggling to live.

It feels like something entirely new has been ripped from her.

They have to be out there, though. Mukuro-sama was, at the very least. She could feel a phantom tugging; as if a string was wrapped around her very soul. He was her other half, after all, and souls that shared bodied once upon a time didn’t seem to forget each other.

There was so much to think about in this life. Quirks, and heroes, and finding her Family. It made her head swim, but Chrome was braver at this age than she was the first time around.

Which was why she sought out All Might’s sidekick as soon as she found out what her Quirk was. He wasn’t seen often, but a quick search online for “future seeing” quirks had brought him up on the front page. It helped that he was still in Tokyo- and that was where she could feel Mukuro-sama’s presence the strongest. Even if it was a long shot, she needed someone to help train her quirk.

(She might’ve become a fan of him, too, as her research got her delving deeper and deeper. What of it?)

It was lucky that she found the right place. Even if she was exhausted, and very cold, and spent all her meager savings on getting there. He agreed to train her, too! How lucky was that?

Chrome yawns, rubbing her eye as she comes back to the waking world. There’s a smell of cooking fish that makes her stomach growl, keeping her from going back to sleep. So she sits up and spots Nighteye in the kitchenette of his apartment.

“Good morning, Rosuto,”

“Good morning, Nighteye-sama,” She says, already starting to fold one of her borrowed blankets with her frustratingly short arms. It looks more of a blob of fabric, instead of a nice square, but it was as close as she’d get.

Nighteye was chuckling, though, as he started to put the food on the table, “Don’t worry about the blankets, I’ll fold them. Come and eat breakfast. We have some things to talk about.”

Even if it didn’t feel right, she left the blankets on the couch and took a seat at the table. Her… teacher, now, took his own chair. A few bites into the meal, he spoke up again.

“I want to talk about your caretakers, Rosuto. I did some digging last night.”

Her breath caught. That wasn’t a… _terrible_ thing, him knowing where she was from, but it still gripped her with fear. She didn’t want to return there. Even if she knew she’d have to, she didn’t want to go back to the place where all eyes skipped over her like she wasn’t there. Like she wasn’t supposed to be reborn in the first place. Letting him know, having to talking about it, made her remember it existed.

Instead, she smiles, “Okay, Nighteye-sama.”

“Hm.” He looks into her eyes, clearly searching for something. “Rosuto, tell me honestly. Do you want to go back there?”

Did she? No, certainly not. Being there made her skin crawl. But it wasn’t like she could stay here, or anywhere else, because no one wanted a child like her. Training her Quirk was killing two birds with one stone: to be strong enough to support her family once again, when they reunited, and to get away from the place she hated.

Chrome swallows most of her words before they tumble out, “I… I don’t have anywhere else.”

“Your orphanage isn’t in Tokyo, isn’t it? It's too far for a child to travel, especially if we plan to train regularly. And even if your caretakers don’t care, I do.” He adjusts his glasses, then reaches into the pocket of his suit jacket and pulls out a folded piece of paper.

When he holds it out to her, she takes it in shaky hands. Confused, mostly. Hopeful, slightly. She doesn’t want to unfold it and let her fantasies crumble to dust.

“I’ll admit, this is a very impulsive decision on my part. But I can’t let you return there. If you don’t want this, I’ll shred that paper. If you do want it, then I have connections who can get this done as soon as possible. It all relies on what _you_ want.”

Chrome breathes in deeply. Then, slowly, she unfolds the paper.

_Foster/Adoptive Parent Registration._

She doesn’t read the rest. Even if she wanted to, she wouldn’t be able, because the tears in her eyes make her vision too blurry. Clutching the paper to her chest, she sobs, “You… You’ll adopt me?”

_You want me?_ Is what she really wants to ask. No adult has ever _wanted_ her. Nana Sawada, maybe, had gotten the closest. But she didn’t know everything, didn’t know about Chrome’s lack of anything _parental._

“I will. The apartment is small, so we’ll need to move, but I’m certain there are places that are still near my Agency.”

“Why? Why go to all this trouble for me?”

Nighteye sighs, a frown on his face, “I… I was concerned by the information I found on your orphanage. It’s on the very outskirts of the prefecture- while we’re more in the middle currently. There’s certainly neglect happening. There wasn’t even a missing child’s report to the police. Fostering you seems like the best solution at this moment, until I can get you settled into a proper family.”

“Thank you…”

Even if this was temporary, Chrome felt so _happy._ This was a taste of what it felt like to have a family. She wanted to savour it, revel in it, for however long she was allowed to.

“Nighteye-sama…” She sniffles, wiping her tears away and calming herself, “Can… Can I hug you?”

He seems surprised, but then his lips twitch into a barely-there smile, “It won’t be a very nice hug, I’m afraid, but if you want to I won’t oppose.”

Chrome hugs him. He hugs her back.

(Silently, both fear that they won't be able to give this up.)

**Author's Note:**

> What do you mean it's August?!
> 
> Uh... Hi. I didn't mean to not post for so long! I feel like I started to take this too seriously and not let my imagination run wild with it, y'know? It made it hard to write.
> 
> I had a totally different idea for Chrome in the beginning, she was originally related to Monoma lol. But then... The parallels. They called out to me. And thus this fic was born. I love Nighteye and I love Chrome, but I feel like I don't have a great grasp on them! Hopefully they aren't too out of character haha!
> 
> Chrome using -sama with people she respects is probably going to be the only honorific use in this series, in case you were wondering. It felt wrong to not write Mukuro-sama when she mentioned him, so it will stay!
> 
> (Poor Chrome, if only she found Nighteye a little bit earlier. She might've found a bit of her family early on.)
> 
> Rosuto means lost in Japanese. At least, I think it does. Also sounds a lot like Rokudo. For some irony. [Edit: As LittleSnowyRascal9842 pointed out, the Japanese word for lost is actually Maigo. Since it was just a placeholder name anyways, I don't think I'll change it, but I wanted to correct it in the note at least haha!]
> 
> I really need to relate more kids to the students. It's pro hero city in this au whoops!
> 
> Hopefully I'll get back to regularly posted fics for this au. I'm already thinking up stuff for the main story, and for another little spin-off thing that might happen! Next up is Mukuro!
> 
> Chrome Rosuto/Sasaki  
> Quirk: Locator  
> She's able to approximately pinpoint where someone will be in the next twenty-four hours. To activate her quirk, she needs to make eye-to-eye contact with the person. Her quirk is constantly active and can get disorienting.


End file.
